St Thomas Aquinas College Golfer Brendan Hunter won the 108th Massachusetts Amateur Golf Championship on Friday at the Taconic Golf Club in Williamstown, Mass. After five days of golf, the Groton resident and Spartan senior is the best amateur golfer in the state of Massachusetts.
Brendan, who plays out of the Red Tail Golf Club in Devens, beat John Kelly of East Longmeadow, a former University of Rhode Island Golfer and Twin Hills Country Club Member, 4 and 3 after 33 of the 36 scheduled holes of the final at Taconic Golf Club. The pair halved the final two holes, and Kelly could not catch up.
This was Hunter's first Massachusetts Amateur title, while Kelly was seeking to win his first title since 2014.
Hunter entered match play as the No. 9 seed and beat his former St. Thomas Aquinas College teammate, Christopher Gentile in the first round.
Kelly was the 27th seed in match play and he knocked off another teammate of Brendan's, St. Thomas Aquinas player, Kevin Gately of Pembroke, in the round of 16. However, Kelly could not get the better of Hunter in the finals.
Brendan played better on two particular holes along the back nine that gave him a commanding lead. Hunter was 1 up on Kelly after the first 18 holes of the day, and couldn't seem to pull away over the first eight holes of the second round. That changed on the ninth.
At the ninth hole, a par-3 hole, the flag was placed near the front of the green. Both golfers hit the green but Kelly's birdie putt missed by about a foot. Hunter had the more makable putt, an 8-footer, and drained it to go two up after 27 holes.
On the 10th hole, Kelly found himself in the rough on the right side after he hit a shorter tee shot than Hunter. Kelly's second shot found sand to the front left of the 10th's elevated green. Kelly's first shot out of the bunker didn't clear the top of the hill and rolled back down. A second attempt did the same, and that led to Hunter winning the hole and going 3 up.
There were five putts for birdie in the 33 holes of match play golf. Both competitors admitted that on Friday, Taconic was a very unforgiving golf course, especially on the greens.
Hunter, hopes the confidence associated with his victory carries him into Tuesday’s U.S. Amateur qualifier at Wykagyl CC in New Rochelle, N.Y. The championship will be held next month at Oakland Hills in Michigan.